Flash Site Design - Best way to resize a Flash file

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Best way to resize a Flash file

Don Hinshaw

2005-05-10, 11:18 pm

Hi there,
I was handed an FLA file and asked to resize it. It contains bitmaps,
among them a PNG file with alpha transparency. I do not have any other
source files, only the FLA.
I can resize the elements and the movie, but the quality of the PNG file
gets worse, and the file size of the SWF stays pretty large (I am
downsizing the movie).
Question: is there a good way to resize the entire movie and preserve
the image quality (and hopefully reduce the file size)?
Or is there a way for me to extract the PNG file and preserve the
transparancy? When I copy and paste the image into FW, it has a white
background. If I could extract the PNG I could resize it in FW and
reimport it into Flash.

Thanks for any ideas.

Don Hinshaw

merlinvicki

2005-05-11, 4:18 am

in Flash MX04 I can export the .png file as a .png file.
File>export>export image>Choose png
Then u can open it in Photoshop or FW and optimise it. transparent gif is
less size than transparent png's.
Similarly u can also optimize ur jpg's. Optimising in a graphic software is
always better than letting flash do it simply because u get more options for
reducing filesize.
Since u have the FLA U can also try calling the jpg's at runtime using
loadMovie rather than including all of them in the movie. It will drastically
reduce ur size.

Don Hinshaw

2005-05-11, 7:24 pm

merlinvicki wrote:
> in Flash MX04 I can export the .png file as a .png file.
> File>export>export image>Choose png
> Then u can open it in Photoshop or FW and optimise it. transparent gif is
> less size than transparent png's.
> Similarly u can also optimize ur jpg's. Optimising in a graphic software is
> always better than letting flash do it simply because u get more options for
> reducing filesize.
> Since u have the FLA U can also try calling the jpg's at runtime using
> loadMovie rather than including all of them in the movie. It will drastically
> reduce ur size.
>
Thanks for the tip. But when I do that, and choose png as the type of
file, I see no files in the directory to choose from. Am I missing
something?

Thanks again.

Don

David Stiller

2005-05-11, 7:24 pm

> Thanks for the tip. But when I do that, and choose png as the type of
> file, I see no files in the directory to choose from. Am I missing
> something?

The export works by taking what's currently on the screen and exporting
it. You would have to individually place your PNG assets (say, graphic
symbols, if that's what they are) on the Stage and export each, one by one.

FLAs are a pain to resize in this manner or any manner, unfortunately.

David
stiller (at) quip (dot) net
"Luck is the residue of good design."

Don Hinshaw

2005-05-12, 4:20 am

David Stiller wrote:
> The export works by taking what's currently on the screen and
exporting
> it. You would have to individually place your PNG assets (say, graphic
> symbols, if that's what they are) on the Stage and export each, one by one.
>
> FLAs are a pain to resize in this manner or any manner, unfortunately.
>
David,
That was the key. Thanks! Luckily there are only a couple of images that
I need to export and resize.

Don

merlinvicki

2005-05-12, 4:20 am

FLAs are a pain to resize in this manner or any manner, unfortunately.
Fla's are certainly not a pain to resize if u keep ur source image files.
Whenever u need to change the image quality, size or dimensions all u have to
do is to edit the source image files which u imported in the first place. Then
go to the jpg file in ur own fla library and right click on it >Update>In the
pop-up window click Update. Thats it!
Your jpg in the fla gets updated right away. Not only that if u r using them
in any movie clips they also get updated and saves u a hell lot of trouble.
Another way of doing the same thing is to right click on the image in ur
Library and choose Edit. Note that this process will search for the original
source file which u imported earlier into your fla.

Jeckyl

2005-05-12, 4:20 am

It's still not as nice that you have to go out of flash to change your image
size. Would be nice to be able to adjust the image resolution for an
already imported image from within Flash (like you can with (say),
SWiSHmax). But if you're using Flash you're stuck with the way it behaves.
--
Jeckyl

merlinvicki

2005-05-12, 4:20 am

U have to accept the way a software works until and unless the creators improve
upon it. Thats why u have to understand how u can get the best output and save
time using it. SWiSHmax may have other very good capabilities which may be
missing in Flash but we can always have workarounds for getting what we want.
;)

David Stiller

2005-05-12, 7:29 pm

> Fla's are certainly not a pain to resize if u keep ur source
> image files.

I'm not talking about resizing raster assets in Flash. That *is* easy.
But that's not the same thing as resizing an FLA -- not by a long stretch.
When I say it's a pain to resize an FLA, I mean it in the way the OP does:
it is time consuming to change the Stage dimensions and move/resize all the
animation (yes, yes, even with Edit Multiple Frames selected).

> U have to accept the way a software works until and unless
> the creators improve upon it.

You can always make suggestions to the feature request address at
Macromedia. In any case, don't take me wrong ... I *love* Flash. I spend
90% of my work day in Flash and a good deal of my freelance time in it.
I've been working with Flash since version 4. Spend that much time with
anything and you've earned the right to concede a few of its faults. ;)

David
stiller (at) quip (dot) net
"Luck is the residue of good design."

merlinvicki

2005-05-13, 4:22 am

it is time consuming to change the Stage dimensions and move/resize all the
animation (yes, yes, even with Edit Multiple Frames selected).

it is time consuming but it helps if u keep all ur objects on stage inside
movieclips. For vector animations u can just change the mc's size proportions
and for jpg animation u can resize ur source jpg's and update in ur FLA.

David Stiller

2005-05-13, 7:23 pm

> it is time consuming but it helps if u keep all ur objects on
> stage inside movieclips.

True, but you have to admit, this isn't intuitive for many designers.
Movie clips don't animate when you scrub the playhead, so this adds a level
of abstraction that doesn't "feel right" to many developers.

Naturally, if you program all your animation against the Stage
boundaries, it can get to where it's no effort at all to resize the FLA.
But from a designer's point of view, it would be nice to have the effort
automated.

David
stiller (at) quip (dot) net
"Luck is the residue of good design."